With the closing of the exhibition Beyond the Edge:Artist Gardens came the obligation to dismantle and restore the site of the Red Oak Labyrinth. Much more happened under the branches of this grand old oak tree then I ever could have imagined. Many visitors to the site wrote about their experiences in the notebooks left at the centre to capture inspirations and comments. It was important to me to honour all that had taken place in the labyrinth over the summer and while I could have quietly put the project to bed, I wanted the support of the community for whom the place had become meaningful. For me and for many this labyrinth had gone beyond art project or perhaps it was art at its best, really touching people in profound ways.

We gathered for a last walk in the Red Oak Labyrinth. Some folks like to walk in the labyrinth alone but this evening it was all about community. Yes, community is temporary and changeable but this labyrinth drew us together, one and all.

Gratitude and Thanks Giving

Gratitude and thanks giving to she who is Red Oak for spreading wide her branches, offering shelter, shade and centering to host our wanderings in the labyrinth.

Gratitude and thanks giving to all those ancient ones whose wisdom, knowledge and spirit informs our time beneath this grand old Red Oak in the meandering path of the labyrinth.

Gratitude and thanks giving to the Candensis Botanical Garden Society and Agriculture Canada for collectively taking a leap of faith in hosting and facilitating Beyond the Edge: Artist Gardens. This is the first installation and intervention on the land that has been designated to become the future home of a National Botanical Garden and I am so very pleased to have been a part of it.

Collecting the 8 Notebooks filled with “Oak Inspired Thoughts’.

Gratitude to Canadensis for acquiring the Round Tree Bench and ensuring that this spot will continue to be a available as a place of contemplation for all who visit.

Mary Faught Co-Curator

Gratitude and thanks giving to Mary Faught for her visionary willingness to imagine this exhibition into existence with Co-curator Judith Parker whose gift with words and deep experience helped secure the needed funding to make all this possible.

Judith Parker Co-Curator

Gratitude and thanks giving to my fellow “Artists of the Field” with whom I shared a deep and meaningful connection, all be it on the fly with shovels in hand. I met my soul siblings in Glynis, Deborah, cj, Judith, Deirdre, Mary, and Karl. Thank you for your companionship in exploring and forging deeper connections between nature and culture.

Gratitude and thanks giving to the Ontario Arts Council, the City of Ottawa, and the Community Foundation of Ottawa and Canadensis Botanical Garden Society for financial support in this fledgling endeavor.

Gratitude and thanks giving to the hundreds of people, who visited the exhibition, walked the labyrinth and left many, many notes, of thanks, “Oak Inspired Thoughts” and reflective insights in the 8 notebooks, which were filled over the course of the exhibition.

Gratitude and thanks giving to all those many hands and strong backs who responded to the call for help to build this labyrinth.

Dismantalling the LabyrinthStacking up the logs.The logs of the labyrinth become cord-wood once again.

Gratitude and thanks giving to all who gathered to help celebrate, honor and restore this fine place to its natural state.

The Red Oak is retored to its natural state once more.Oak aged libations for all.Reflections of a great tree in a glass of oak aged white port.

Photos of the Closing Ceremony and Dismantaling of the Red Oak Labyrinth by Stephen Hutchings, with thanks!

We would like to acknowledge funding support from the Ontario Arts Council,

Planning, organizing, shopping, and site preparation have me noticing the invisible quality of preparations. Preparing is essential and poor preparations can be ones undoing.

Considerable time has been spent on preparing for the Beyond the Edge Artists Gardens Project and very little of it can be seen. Mary Faught and Judith Parker are co-curating this project and have spent many long months in preparations. Many meetings with the powers that be, negotiating land use, grant writing, coordinating with artists and extensive planning have gone on this winter in preparation to invite 5 artists to engage with the future site of the Botanical Garden in Ottawa.

Now with preparations in hand we begin with shovel in hand…..well not so fast. More meetings and coordination behind the scenes. The artists are arriving on site and preparations begin in earnest. What seemed a good idea last fall may not hold up in the light of spring. Some rethinking, and more planning and rejigging are required as we approach the site and the realities of what our plans look like when laid out on the ground.

It’s an interesting process to review plans that were made in a “pie in the sky moment” six months ago. One of my calculations was missing “pie” in the formula and as a result the cost went up by 1/3rd, Yikes!

This weekend my partner Daniel stepped in as master carpenter. I am the assistance holding the other end of the board. We are making a round bench to encircle the trunk of the “Mighty Red Oak”. Hoping those who thread the path of the Labyrinth will appreciate a place to sit and rest a while.

Carpenter Man in the Middle

We would like to acknowledge funding support from the Ontario Arts Council,

I have wanted to make an outdoor labyrinth under a tree for some time and the opportunity presented itself with an invitation from the Canadensis Botanical Garden in Ottawa. Curators Mary Faught and Judith Parker envisioned temporary artist projects on the site of the new Botanical Garden and have invited 5 artists/teams to create special installations this summer.

Last fall we visited the site just before the snow fell and we were back there again this week and things looked remarkable the same. No leaves on the tree and the grass just greening up.

In preparation for the project the arborist at the Experimental Farm and Arboretum trimmed off the dead branches to make it safe to work under. He suggested the tree was about 100 years old. Feels auspicious!

The tree in question is a Quercus Rubra or more commonly known as a Red Oak. Funny how most of us can’t tell a red oak from a white, but we sure know the difference between a Volkswagen and the Ford. Such is the state of contemporary living. This old oak has low hanging branches that come down almost to the ground, creating a sheltered area beneath its branches. I am hoping the experience of walking a labyrinth in the shadow of this great beauty will offer an opportunity to slow down and take in the landscape, the smells the light and shadow and for a moment enter into slow time,… tree time,… leaf time.

Follow along and track the story of how this idea becomes a real labyrinth path to walk upon.

We would like to acknowledge funding support from the Ontario Arts Council,